Babylon

What happens up on that screen means something. Maybe not to you in your ivory tower. But for real people on the ground, it means something.Like if George Miller made a movie dedicated to cinema—a love letter to cinema itself that you will only love if you know about movies. I kinda do and now I want to know a fuck ton more. It's kind of like Avengers: Endgame of the cinema industry and of actors too because the cast is stacked. Like Chazelle said, it's "A hate letter to Hollywood and a love letter to movies." It's messy and epic, chaotic, and feels like you just drank too much. I thought it would be set more recently, so being set in the '20s actually made me like it even more. Even when I wasn't mesmerized by the visuals or interested in the plot, I was still intrigued by how movies were made at that time and how jaw-dropping taking pictures was considered a time when Hollywood was still being created. Babylon shows us the reality of Hollywood—the raw, narcissistic decisions, the ruthlessness, and how you have to really, REALLY be ready to give everything to create something magical and memorable. Chazelle poured everything into this movie. It's such a remarkable and the shortest 3 hours of my life. It's incredible: set pieces, characters, music, dancing—just the fucking vibes of this make up for the flaws it has. Like a little messy moment towards the end was made up for by that fucking montage. The movie made me feel like it wasn't worth watching at times, but then the one-takes, the scenes—everything just made it all so fucking mesmerizing. I want to snort this movie. The movie has its flaws. Basically, all movies have. I'll point them out now. First off, towards the end, everything was just feeling so messy. Like, I don't know what it was, but there was something just not really making sense there, and I did not really like how they did one specific death. I think that's about it. You can feel that it is messy at times, but I don't mind that, dude. It's part of the fun for me. Oh, and maybe there were too many "Singin' in the Rain" references. I didn't even watch that movie and I got them all, so we get it, Chazelle, you like that movie. The movie just felt that in the end, it was having so many endings. It was never-ending, like it was going to stop but then kept going and going. Chazelle reached for the stars in this movie. The cast was perfect. Margot Robbie was the best one for me, but honestly, her and Brad Pitt were close equals. It's just... you know... Margot Robbie. The energy she brings to her character, Nellie LaRoy, is a mirror of the energetic, drug-fueled, chaotic part of Hollywood. She is one of those people who was just born for the world to see, born to break the boundaries of that era and be something great. She is so full of life but makes so many impulsive choices that should make me annoyed with her, but I wasn't. Nellie was just so charismatic I started to feel bad for her for the endless spiral she was falling into. And Brad Pitt as Jack Conrad was excellent. He makes it look like he is just having such a fun time on set but still manages to deliver such a great and memorable performance. In the end, he kinda reminded me of Cristiano Ronaldo—both didn't know when to quit their careers. What I love about this movie is that it feels like a movie that, once you watch it at the cinema, you have such a fucking fun time. It feels real—a 3-hour chaotic Hollywood hell, but the chaos is never "chaos." It's with purpose. It reflects the anxieties, pressures, and impulsiveness of early Hollywood—how everything was evolving too fast to keep up. The soundtrack and cinematography stand out the most for me. With those, Chazelle made such a sensory feast. The soundtrack by Hurwitz is a demonstration of the fucking immense talent he has and so perfectly fits with the movie. A mix of jazz and orchestras and contemporary, though transitioning so quickly—like the movie mirroring perfectly the chaotic energy of this and the raw energy of the 1920s Hollywood. From the exuberant, messy, fucking energetic drug party scenes to the more quiet, severe moments of descent and fame and the evolution of these times, it perfectly highlights the highs and the lows of the movie. The cinematography, I think we all agree, is fucking perfect. Linus Sandgren is so impressive. It feels like everyone in this just took a bunch of compound V and boosted their power beyond their limits. It made this a visual spectacle: its vibrant, goldish palette and such smooth, dynamic, interactive camera movements made this so immersive and feel much shorter than 3 hours. His wide-angle shots and extensive long one-takes highlight the grandeur of the era but also enhance the sense of scale and spectacle of "always make a scene." The camera fluidity just captures the passing of time so quickly. Honestly, it just makes you want to fuck this movie. The ending is just beyond words to me too. How Chazelle pulled it off is amazing. It edged us for so much time to just homage cinema, show us what it has been through, the changes, its evolution, to create such a different reality. Because that's what cinema is—a reality we create so hard after so much work, sweat, tears, and blood to let us enter it and be them. Whether we relate to them or want to be them or hate them, we forget our own shitty fucking lives, and for the runtime of the movie, we are transported into a different reality. Chazelle captures that perfectly. Overall, "Babylon" is a chaotic love letter to cinema, showcasing Damien Chazelle’s passion for filmmaking with a star-studded cast and a sensory overload. The soundtrack by Justin Hurwitz blends jazz and orchestral elements, mirroring the film’s frenetic energy and 1920s Hollywood’s raw spirit. Linus Sandgren’s cinematography is a visual marvel, with vibrant colors and dynamic camera work that captures the era’s grandeur and chaos. Despite some messy moments and excessive references, the film's epic set pieces and captivating performances by Margot Robbie and Brad Pitt make it a mesmerizing, immersive experience.